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We're looking forward to a few new projects at FoodSmiles
this year, and the first is already underway: we're pleased to be taking on a
patch of additional land at the CDA (Community Development
Agency) garden on Hixberry Lane, St Albans.

The CDA garden was created on land provided by Oaklands
College, and funded by St Albans District Council and other local partners. It
aims to increase access to, and understanding of, nature and the environment,
to help people develop growing skills, and to help people with economic and
social disadvantages, and it already has several plots in use by community
groups, a shared orchard, and beehives installed and looked after by a local
beekeeper.

FoodSmiles are taking on a space providing eight additional
veg beds, and the team has already made great progress preparing them for
spring. The veg grown here will be added to our harvest boxes each week, and
we'll be using them to boost our winter harvests in particular. We'll also help
with the orchard at the garden and benefit from some of the fruit – and we're
hoping to grow some hops here too as part of local brewer Farr Brew's 'Hop Collective'!

We're really pleased to have a site in St Albans at last,
closer to all our St Albans members – though we'll still need some of them to
help work our larger site in Harpenden too! – and we're looking forward to
working more here at the CDA garden.